Covid curbs earn police ₹1.40 crore in fine this year
Jharkhand police have realised fine of more than ₹1.40 crore against violation of Covid-19 guidelines since lockdown-like restrictions came into effect from April 22, officials said on Sunday.
The state government introduced Swasthya Suraksha Saptah (health protection week) from April 22 with few restrictions in a bid to contain the ongoing second wave of coronavirus infection. As per details provided by the police department, it realised ₹2 lakh fine per day between April 23 and May 15, when there were no restrictions on movement of public or private transport.
However, the daily average fine rose up to ₹6 lakh after the state government made e-pass mandatory for all private vehicles, and prohibited movement of inter and intrastate bus service from May 16.
The department realized ₹9,341,300 as fine from 78,072 people across the state between May 16 and 29 for violation of Covid-19 guidelines, including not wearing masks in public places and violating lockdown norms, as per the data released by Jharkhand police.
A total of ₹6,112,102 was realised from 12,415 people for violating
lockdown rules between May 16 and 29 , while ₹3,229,198 was realised from 65,657 people for not wearing mask during the period.
Garhwa district topped the chart in terms of fine between May 16 and 29. The department realised ₹2,193,700 fine from the district, while Ranchi stood at the second place with ₹1,111,000 fine during the period. The department earned ₹10,56,800 from Hazaribagh as fine.
On the other hand, residents of Jamtara district seemed to have followed Covid-19 guidelines better than other parts of the state. The department realized merely ₹74,800 as fine from the district, followed by Lohardaga district where ₹78,000 fine amount was realized during the period.
Jharkhand police spokesperson Amol Homkar said they imposed the checking drive uniformly across the state. “The fine amount was realised a bit higher in some districts. But, we have not yet analysed the reasons behind it,” he said.
The state government has extended lockdown restrictions for the fifth time till June 3 morning. The lockdown-like restrictions helped Jharkhand to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the state, with new cases falling significantly in the past two weeks. The state recorded 823 cases and 13 deaths on Saturday.